Beaver Local’s girls soccer team celebrates the Div. IV regional championship after a 1-0 victory over Albany Alexander on Saturday at West Muskingum High School. Members of the team are (front, from left) ball girl Kaitlyn Yeager, ball girl Sam Williams, Ally Wright, Bella Long, Alexis Lasure, Peyton Dunn, Lainie Bock, Bella McLevey, Emily Saphore, Sophia Smith, Jess Stoneburner; (second row) athletic trainer Nina Farinelli, head coach Liz Connor, ball girl Allison Roberts, ball girl Ellee Owens, Ralyn Gilson, Addy Shields, Charlee Allison, Kyila Randolph, Leah Stewart, Jansen Ours, Natalie Woodyard, Naiya Springer, assistant coach Alyssa Culp and assistant coach Hannah Cochran; (back) Lilly Wright, Riley Springer, Tatum Duncan, Teneille Diaz-Wilson, Kori Carlon, Emily Milner and Kinley Owens. (Photo by Melanie Dunn)

ZANESVILLE — Beaver Local’s dance with destiny has led it to the pinnacle of the sport in the Buckeye State — the state tournament.

The Beaver Local girls’ soccer team is state bound after capturing a Div. IV regional crown with a 1-0 triumph over Albany Alexander played before a large crowd at the sun-drenched West Muskingum Sports Complex Saturday afternoon.

“At the beginning of the season Peyton (Dunn) and I had a conversation at Dunkin’ Donuts and she said, coach, this is our year,” reflected Beaver Local head coach Liz Connor. “We’ve worked all season long (for this state tournament berth).”

“It feels really good (going to state),” said Dunn, who rifled in what turned out to be the winning goal in the second half. “I just stayed relaxed and tucked it away. I’ve (set the goal of reaching state) since last season when we ended it. I wanted it more than anything because I knew what kind of team we would have this year.”

The Beavers (19-2), whose longest prior tournament run in the sport was a regional runner-up finish in the 2016 campaign, will be making their first trip to the state tournament. Beaver Local will meet Columbus Academy in the state semifinal at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at Coschocton’s Stewart Field.

And was the celebration on after they secured their state berth played before a large contingent of Beaver Local fans who made the 1 hour and 45 minute trip to Zanesville to see it.

“Oh, my goodness, this is just amazing,” said Beaver Local senior captain Lainie Bock. “Being a senior, this is something I’ve wanted since my freshman year and to do it with this team and these girls is amazing. We’re all so close and such best friends. I wouldn’t want to do this with anybody else.”

Albany Alexander, which also enjoyed a great season, bowed out with a 16-4-1 record.

“We just couldn’t get the opportunities to fall for us,” said Alexander head coach Todd Norris. “We were doing the work defensively, we just couldn’t find the back of the net.”

The match pitted two of the top defensive teams in Division IV girls’ soccer. Beaver Local entered the match having surrendered just 20 goals all season (an average of just one goal per game) and had shut out 13 opponents. Meanwhile, Albany Alexander had shut out 14 of its previous foes.

Needless to say, scoring was at a premium as the two teams battled for that one defensive crack in their opponent’s defense that would make the difference.

That occurred with 35:58 showing on the second-half clock when Dunn took a pass from Jansen Ours, skillfully maneuvered around a Spartan defender in a one-on-one matchup and sent a goal into the back left of the net.

“We just kept knocking on the door and we had positive feelings at halftime and we knew we were going to come out and be able to find things,” said Connor. “We felt like they (the Spartans sat back on defense a lot in the first half, so we were trying to find the gaps. And Jansen Ours found Peyton making a run up top and she was able to put it in the side netting and there’s not much more you can ask.”

Dunn, who is one of the top goal scorers in Ohio (all divisions combined) has now scored 45 goals this season and 96 in her two-year varsity career.

“She’s just phenomenal and I feel like in some cases she’s under-rated and she just keeps proving people wrong every single game,” lauded Connor of her sophomore standout.

“We knew who their dangerous players were,” said Norris. “We knew No. 7 (Dunn) and No. 11 (Leah Stewart) were their dangerous girls and we just gave up a little too much space and she (Dunn) found a shot, and it was an amazing shot, in the back of the net.”

Beaver Local dominated several stats in the game. The Beavers led in shots-on-goal, 13-8 and corner kicks, 8-4.

Junior goalkeeper Tatum Duncan was outstanding in the net for the Beavers. She had eight saves in the match, including stopping a key Alexander penalty kick with a great save in the second half.

“Our goalie (Tatum Duncan) saves us a lot,” said Dunn. “Just the whole defense as a team hustles back and our goalie Tatum really works hard back there.”

Once it had the lead, the Beavers’ defense was air-tight in the second half as it turned away every Alexander offensive scoring opportunity.

“We had to make some adjustments with some injuries and Sophia Smith had an excellent game as the center back in leading the (defensive play) with Bella McLevey,” said Connor. “They were working well together. The chemistry’s been there, because we’ve given so many different girls opportunities.”

“I came into this knowing it was going to be close and that they (the Spartans) were going to come out hard and we were going to have to give it our all today, and we did,” said Bock.

“It was a hard battle,” commented Norris.

Connor stated it’s the camaraderie her team possesses on and off the field which also plays a part in their success.

“It’s just a family atmosphere,” smiled the Beaver Local coach. “It’s so enjoyable to watch. We’ve had some birthdays and some team dinners before big games. We’ve been celebrating those and it’s just been awesome.”

The Beaver Local coach praised the large following of fans who made the trip.

“The crowd definitely helped us out,” said Connor. “The team had an awesome student section and our fans brought it and made it even louder. I just hope the girls realize what a big accomplishment it is.

Notes

Beaver Local has outscored its opponents 116-20 this season.

¯ Stewart Field is located at 245 S. Water St. in a residential and commercial district in Coshocton. It is not at the high school and there is limited parking adjacent to the site along with street parking.

¯ Tickets are $16 for adults and $10 for students for the state final and championship games. Go to OHSAA.org/tickets to order or for more information.

¯ The actual midway point for both schools was around the Cambridge area, but Beaver Local has played there during the tournament and in the regular season.

¯ Beaver Local is the first girls team from Columbiana County to make the girls state soccer tournament.